Naru 12
by Magic Kitty
Summary: Naru, Akane's pen pal, is taking a break from her search for her father in Nerima. However, Nerima is not usually the best place to rest. Naru's not an ordinary girl though. R&R please.
1. Default Chapter

Okay, I'm only going to say all this once:  
  
I don't own Ranma, Akane, Ukyo, Ryoga (I wish), Mousse, Shampoo, or anything else in the Ranma ½ universe. The only things I own are the characters Naru, Kenji, and the idea. I am making no money off of this. I'm just doing this for fun. If you don't believe me then, well, you shouldn't be here.  
  
"Japanese"  
  
%Chinese%  
  
*Thoughts*  
  
I'm not going to remind you again.  
  
I hope you like the story. Please review. Also, be nice. This is my first fic. 


	2. The New girl

Chapter 1: The New Girl  
  
The red haired girl ran very fast, not because she had a time limit to get where she was going, but because she wanted to get there fast. She was a blur of motion as she rushed past people and around corners. The most incredible thing was that she was running on the fences and not the sidewalks.  
  
That actually was not what was causing people to stare at her. The were used to people running that fast. They were even used to one person in particular running on the fences.  
  
What caused them to stare was the fact that she did not have a pigtail and was not wearing Chinese clothing. Her hair was cropped to about earlobe length and her clothing was definitely American. If her hair had been in one pigtail down the back, no one would have given her a second glance. Even if her clothing had been remotely Chinese looking she would have been spared a few stares.  
  
Of course, she never noticed the stares. She wasn't paying attention, lost in her thoughts.  
  
She did notice when a purple-haired girl suddenly jumped her.  
  
Akane rushed home from school. Her pen friend was coming to stay with her for a while, and she needed to make sure that everything was ready. She had first written to Naru when she was in third grade as a school project, and the correspondence had kept up since, even when Naru had left America for China.  
  
Naru was actually from Japan, but her mother and she had moved to America when she was very little. Her father had left her when she was a baby. She had no memory of him. A few years ago she had decided to go to China for a few reasons. The first was the fact that her father was there, and she wanted to find him.  
  
The second was the fact that she was a martial artist, and she wanted to train.  
  
Akane smiled. Naru's training had gone well. She was now mostly focusing on tracking her father. When Naru had told her that she had discovered that he was in Japan, Akane invited her to stay for a while with her, while she figured out his exact location. Naru had agreed.  
  
Naru was going to be staying for at least a month, and so she would be going to school with Akane. Akane relished the thought of having a sane person to talk to. She needed that right now. Her life was being turned upside down by Ranma and the chaos that seemed to cling to him like a magnet.  
  
She was shook out of her thoughts by a cry from a voice she recognized, Shampoo.  
  
"Nihao, Arien!" came the cry.  
  
No matter how much of a hurry she was in, Akane always had time to clobber Ranma if he even touched one of his other "fiancées". From the sound of it, Shampoo was probably hanging all over Ranma at the moment and he had to be punished for that.  
  
Running towards where she had heard the voice, she came upon a strange scene. Shampoo was trying to hug a person who at first appeared to be Ranma in his girl form. However there where a few things that didn't seem quite right. For one thing, the girl was not wearing anything that Ranma would wear. She was dressed in American style, very feminine clothing, black capris and a green halter top. Another thing was that her hair was too short. Still, it was possible that this could be Ranma with a new look, except for one thing.  
  
As she was dodging Shampoo's hugs with the speed that only a martial artist could manage, she was speaking fluently in Chinese to Shampoo.  
  
If there was one thing that was a fact in the world, it was that Ranma could not speak Chinese for the life of him. There was only one explanation.  
  
This was not Ranma.  
  
"Naru?" Akane asked.  
  
Naru had been very bewildered when the Chinese girl had jumped at her calling her husband. Naru had met this girl before, in a less friendly situation. It had been in China, and the girl, *Xian Pu* Naru remembered, had attacked her, thinking she was some girl who had defeated her in battle. She was an Amazon. Naru had only just managed to escape with her life, and that was not the last time she had tangled with the Amazon. Finally she had cut her hair short so that she could be told apart from who ever the girl was hunting.  
  
But this, she could not explain. She could not possibly look anything like the poor man who had managed to defeat her (Naru had made a point of researching Amazon laws so as not to get on the wrong side of them). Why was the girl calling her husband then?  
  
%Wait a minute, what are you talking about?% She said in Shampoo's language.  
  
%Ranma, you can finally speak my language. Did you practice just so you could marry me?% Shampoo yelled delightedly in the same language.  
  
%What.? Ranma.? Weren't you trying to kill her? Since when do Amazons consent to same sex marriages?%  
  
Shampoo finally stopped chasing her and actually looked at her. At the same moment, another girl said, "Naru?"  
  
At the same time Shampoo said "Naru? What you doing here?"  
  
"I could ask the same of you. What happened to Ranma? Is she dead?"  
  
"No. It long story. I have fiancée now."  
  
"So I gathered."  
  
Akane spoke up again, tentatively. "So, you are Naru?"  
  
Naru looked at her. "Akane?"  
  
"Naru!" Akane yelled gladly, racing forward as Naru jumped down from the fence to greet her.  
  
"Good thing I found you." Naru said. "Otherwise, I would have had to walk around the whole area, looking for your dojo."  
  
"I believe I found you." Akane corrected.  
  
Shampoo could no longer stay out of the conversation. "How you know Naru?" She asked Akane.  
  
"How do you know her?" Akane asked in surprise.  
  
"I ask first."  
  
"How about you let me explain." Interrupted Naru, who could see an argument coming a mile away. "I met Xian Pu in China, where she mistook me for a girl named Ranma, whom she was trying to kill. Akane has been my pen friend since we where in third grade. Does that explain everything?"  
  
They never got a chance to answer. At that moment a busty redhead came around the corner, chased by a tall boy dressed like a samurai, waving a wooden sword about and spouting poetry. The girl stopped as she saw Shampoo.  
  
The boy froze as he saw the group. Anyone could see why. Naru and the redhead looked almost exactly alike. The only differences were their clothing, the length and style of their hair, and their eyes. Their bodies also had slightly different builds, but it was only noticeable when they were examined very carefully. If they had dressed alike and styled their hair the same, one would have a hard time telling them apart.  
  
Hazel eyes met blue as the two redheads stared at each other. They couldn't seem to find words for the situation.  
  
Naru recovered first. "So, you must be Ranma." She turned to Shampoo. %Aren't you trying to kill her?%  
  
%Like I said, it's a long story.% Shampoo replied.  
  
%You'll have to explain it to me sometime.%  
  
%If you're going to stay here, there's going to be a lot of explaining done.% Shampoo sighed. %Lets start with this.% She went into the nearest house and came back with a kettle of hot water. %That is not a she.% She said pointing at Ranma. %That is a he.% She pored hot water on the girl.  
  
Sure enough, as soon as the steam cleared, Naru saw that the redhead had turned into a rather cute, muscular black-haired boy with a pigtail.  
  
%So that explains the husband thing, right?%  
  
%Right. You're taking this very calmly.%  
  
%Well.% She began.  
  
"I couldn't understand a word you two were just saying, but."  
  
The pigtailed boy was interrupted by the samurai wannabe boy yelling, "Ranma Soatome, bring back my pigtailed beauty you foul sorcerer."  
  
"Excuse me." Said Ranma. He walked over and casually kicked the other boy so hard that Naru could have sworn that he was going to reach the moon. "Now, where was I?"  
  
"You couldn't understand a word we just said. By the way, who's the samurai guy?" Naru supplied for him calmly.  
  
"Right. I'm guessing that she was trying to explain my curse right? Oh, and that was Kunou, the biggest idiotic moron on the face of the earth." Suddenly he did a double take.  
  
"Wait a sec, you're taking this very calmly." He said, surprised.  
  
"Of course. I've been to Jusenkyou." 


	3. Naru's Story

Chapter 2: Naru's Story  
  
The Nerima Wrecking crew all came together rather peacefully, for once, to greet the newcomer at the Tendo Dojo and find out what kind of competition she would provide.  
  
As soon as everyone had gathered, except for the Kunous who nobody really wanted to bother to wait for, explanations began.  
  
First came Ranma, with his tale of how he and his father had traveled to China to train, and how he arrived at his curse. Then Shampoo provided her story, in Chinese since Naru could understand her. Ukyo was next. Then Mousse. Of course, as soon as he was done, the Kunous had wandered in, and had effectively missed all the Jusenkyou curse explanations. And so they told their rather biased stories, and everyone, including Naru, kicked them through the wall, and out of the house.  
  
Now, throughout all the explanations, everyone had been adding bits to everyone else's stories, and tempers would begin to fly. Luckily, Naru was very good at calming people down, so the Dojo was still in pretty much one piece. Genma Soatome and Soun Tendo, especially Soun, were beginning to feel that they were going to enjoy having this girl around.  
  
That feeling was short lived.  
  
It was Ryoga's turn to speak. Before he could begin, however, Naru interrupted.  
  
"So, we've got a cat, a duck, a panda, and a girl already. What do you turn into Ryoga?"  
  
Now, since Akane was in the room with them, nobody was going to mention Ryoga's curse so as not to hurt Akane's feelings. However, Naru didn't know about the unspoken promise never to reveal him. Everyone gasped.  
  
"W-w-what do you mean?" Ryoga said nervously.  
  
"What curse did you pick up?" Naru asked again.  
  
"I don't know what you're talking about." Ryoga said. "I'm not cursed."  
  
Naru frowned at him. "You're lying." She held up a hand before anyone could protest. "Don't try it. I know you're lying. I was there. I saw you get knocked into that pool."  
  
Everyone's jaw dropped.  
  
Naru's frown got deeper. "Surely some of you knew. I can't believe he managed to keep this a secret this whole time."  
  
"Akane's the only one who doesn't know." Ranma muttered. "And that's only because nobody told her."  
  
"Why not?" Akane was angry.  
  
Nobody answered.  
  
Naru couldn't stand the silence. She spoke up.  
  
"Why don't I tell you my story? It might make a few things clear. And." she grinned ruefully. "I think I'm going to owe Ryoga here an apology."  
  
"I moved to America with my mother when I was young. My father had left me as a baby. I never met him. He was a martial artist. He left because I was not a boy, and he didn't want to train a girl. He thought girls were weak. Girls needed protection. Girl could not fight. Girls." she trailed of, her fists clenched hard. She was trying to keep her temper in check.  
  
"A few years ago, I decided I wanted to find my father. My mother had trained me to be a great martial artist, so I felt that I was up to a journey to China, where I had discovered my father was currently training himself. I followed him, partly because I also wanted to train in China."  
  
"I tracked him all over China. It wasn't a hard trail to follow. Wherever he went, he seemed to cause trouble. Several times, I was told that when I found him, I was to give him a good beating for what he'd done. However, he was fast, so I never could catch up with him. Then, I came to Jusenkyou."  
  
"Luckily for me, I could read and speak Chinese, so I knew about the curse. My father, apparently, did not. Lured by the words 'training grounds' he made his way there. When I arrived, I could not find him."  
  
"I was looking out over the springs soon after arriving when I felt a tap on the shoulder. It was a giant panda. As soon as I turned around, the panda attacked me. Now, as you can understand, I was a bit confused. I think I understand now though. At that time, my hair was a bit longer, as long as Ranma's in fact. I would wear it up in a pigtail. The panda must have been Ranma's father. He must have thought that I was Ranma in his girl form."  
  
"I fought back, but the panda managed to knock me into one of the springs. Luckily the guide happened to be coming by with some hot water, and witnessed this. However, the damage had been done. As soon as I was returned to my natural form." she trail of, her fists clenched again.  
  
"What do you become?" Akane asked.  
  
"You'll find out soon enough." She sighed. "I've gotten used to it by now. But I was furious at the time. The panda finally seemed to realize that I was not who he thought I was when he found that my natural form was that of a girl. He seemed to feel guilty. I was not satisfied. So he took off, and I ran after him, intending to beat him to a pulp."  
  
"I was still chasing him when I suddenly saw a boy standing in our path. I couldn't stop in time. I knocked him off balance. When I came back to try and help him, he had already fallen into a spring, and I didn't know which one. I couldn't do anything and the panda was getting away. I left. However, I did get a good enough look at him to recognize him when I saw him next."  
  
Ryoga and Ranma were staring slack jawed through this part of the narrative. Naru turned to them. "I'm sorry Ryoga. It was an accident. I would have helped you if I could have, but I couldn't. If there's anything I can do to repay you." She looked at him hopefully.  
  
Ryoga couldn't speak. All this time, he had blamed Ranma for his curse. Then along comes this girl who looks like Ranma, and he finds out he's been blaming the wrong person. Ranma was innocent. Ryoga cringed. Now Ranma would want retribution for all the beating he had taken from Ryoga.  
  
Naru could see that Ryoga was still processing the information. "Think about it, and if there is anything, tell me."  
  
Ryoga and Ranma weren't really listening as she told everyone how Shampoo had chased her, how she had found out her father had gone back to Japan, and how Akane had offered to let her stay a while.  
  
When she finished, Akane spoke up. "Well, we now have quite a zoo of Jusenkeyo curses. A girl, a duck, a cat, a pig, a panda and something we don't know about. What next? An iguana?"  
  
Ranma frowned. Akane had said something that didn't quite sound right. He couldn't figure out what it was. He saw that just about everyone else was going though similar confusion. Naru opened her mouth to say something, but Akane shushed her and winked.  
  
*What did Akane said that was wrong?* Ranma thought. *She said that we have quite a zoo of curses. She named them; girl, duck, cat, pig. wait a minute. Pig? How did.?*  
  
"Akane." Ranma said slowly. "How did you know that Ryoga's cursed form was a pig?" 


	4. Secrets and Stupidity

Chapter 3: Secrets and Stupidity  
  
Akane gave Ranma a disgusted glare. "Did you really think that I was that stupid. It was obvious. I've known ever since the night I found 'P-Chan'. Why do you think I didn't just give him a bath myself? Why do you think I had you do it?"  
  
"But-but you slept with him. He was in your bed. You." Ranma was in shock.  
  
"I was in my pajamas. I wasn't revealing anything." Akane replied.  
  
"Yeah, but when I came in."  
  
"You weren't a pig."  
  
"Yeah, but what about the time when we thought there was a spring of drowned man under the locker room. You had only a bra on, and you hugged him to your breast."  
  
"You were peeking." Akane was getting mad. "You pervert." Her mallet was out, and she looked dangerous.  
  
"Who are you calling a pervert? Ryoga." Ranma pointed at him.  
  
"Ryoga is an entirely different matter."  
  
"Oh really." Ranma put his face right up to hers.  
  
"Yes really." She didn't let him make her back down.  
  
Ranma drew back, a smirk on his face. "Oh, now I get it."  
  
"Get what?" Akane was still made, but his expression had put her off balance.  
  
"You like him. You like Ryoga. That's why you don't mind squishing him against you. You'd like to do it when he was in." He got no further.  
  
Akane was mad. She was radiating anger all over the place. Everyone but Ranma, who was smirking at her, Ryoga, who was looking hopeful, and Naru, who was watching the fight with interest, had backed as far away as possible in the room. Akane was in one of those moods where she didn't care who got hurt as long as Ranma was hurt in the bargain.  
  
"I! Do! Not! Like! Ryoga!" She yelled at him through clenched teeth.  
  
"Oh yeah? Then why are you always holding him as a pig?"  
  
"I would rather hold him than you." She spat.  
  
That hurt Ranma, but he didn't want her to know how much it hurt. So he went to his usual method of hiding the pain, insults. "Yeah, well I'd rather you held him then held me any day, Tomboy. I'd rather marry anyone than marry you."  
  
"I'd rather marry Ryoga than marry you."  
  
"Do that then. I'd rather marry Ukyo than you."  
  
"I'd marry Mousse before I'd ever think about marrying you."  
  
"I'd marry Shampoo rather than you."  
  
"I'd rather marry Kunou than marry you."  
  
"You know what? I'd rather marry Kodachi than you. At least she can cook."  
  
"Fine. Marry Kodachi. See if I care. I'd rather marry Happousia than you."  
  
She had done it. She had said the ultimate. Nothing could top that. Unfortunately, Happousia was listening and he took her at her word.  
  
"Akane. You really feel that way." Tears ran down the old lech's face. "My darling, let's marry now. We can elope." He ran forward.  
  
Or at least, he tried to. For some reason, he didn't get anywhere. This was because Naru had caught hold of his shirt and was keeping him in place. She lifted him up, smiling, and poked a point on his side.  
  
As soon as she set him down, he looked up at her. Seeing that she was a very pretty girl who looked a lot like Ranma made him itch to feel her up. So he tried to spring at her.  
  
That was when he discovered that he no longer had the use of his legs.  
  
It would have been comical had the situation been different. But now, with Ranma and Akane facing off, no one spared it a second glance.  
  
Naru decided that she had to put a stop to this. She marched up and got between Akane and Ranma, a very dangerous thing to do. Everyone drew in a sharp breath.  
  
"This is the stupidest thing I've ever seen." She said icily to the two of them. "If you hate each other so much, then just break the engagement. Your parents can't force you to marry."  
  
It was at this point that Soun and Genma decided that they didn't like her after all.  
  
Akane frowned. "Don't tell that to me. Tell it to him. He's the one who can break the engagement. I have no objections." Naru turned to Ranma.  
  
"If I break the engagement, I'll be re-engaged to Nabiki." He shuddered.  
  
"But I thought you said you'd rather marry anyone than marry Akane." Naru smiled sweetly. "We all heard you say that."  
  
Ranma sweatdroped. That wasn't fair. She wasn't supposed to be smart enough to come up with a good comeback. Nobody else was. "Well." He said reluctantly. "I would rather marry Akane than marry Nabiki. But only Nabiki is worse than Akane." He said hurriedly.  
  
"Well then, break the engagement to Akane and don't let them engage you to Nabiki." She said. "Or Kasumi, as I see that that will be your next argument. We're past the age were you have to listen to your parents for this sort of thing. Arranged marriages are old fashioned. You don't have to go along with them."  
  
Ranma said nothing. There was nothing he could say.  
  
Naru watched Ranma's face. Naru was very good at reading feelings in people's bodies. In fact, she was so good that she could practically tell what people were thinking by watching them.  
  
Satisfied with what she saw there, she turned to Akane. But before she could speak, Soun and Genma were standing before her.  
  
"Girl, do not speak of things you know nothing about. Our children must marry to carry on the dojo and."  
  
"Bullshit." Naru said derisively. "You can't force them to do anything. And they can carry on their own dojos without marrying, if they want to. But why should they."  
  
"Girl." Genma began, but was interrupted by Naru's fist connecting with his face. "Ow. That hurt."  
  
"Good. It was supposed to."  
  
"If you weren't a girl." Once again Naru's fist interrupted him, this time in the stomach.  
  
"Girls are not weak." She said quietly. "Girls can fight. Girls can become great martial artists." Her voice was rising in volume and fury. "Girls can fend for themselves. We do not need to be rescued all the time. We are not the weaker sex!" As she said this she lunged at both of them.  
  
At first both of them thought that this would be an easy fight. She was a girl after all. However, they soon found that if they did not take her seriously, they got hurt. Both of them were so hard pressed to defend themselves that they forgot that this was a girl they were facing. They began to attack her as if she were Ranma. And she held them off as if she were Ranma. She dodged and punched and kicked so fast that she seemed to be everywhere at once. She was actually in the air and using their bodies rather than touching the ground. Then she did the best technique.  
  
She kicked them in their groins.  
  
Both of them fell to the floor, doubled over in pain. She landed on the ground lightly and walked up to them.  
  
"In fact, I'd almost say we were stronger because of that little spot on your bodies." Her voice was quiet again. She walked over and grabbed their heads so that they were forced to look at her. "Have I made myself perfectly clear?"  
  
They nodded.  
  
"Good." She said, and pressed a point at the backs of their necks.  
  
They passed out.  
  
She turned back to the rest of the room.  
  
Sometime during the fight the Kunous had regained consciousness and returned. Now Kunou was staring at Naru with his "you are a very pretty, very good, martial artist who I have to date because I love you" look.  
  
Kodachi was just staring with astonishment.  
  
Ranma, Akane, and Nabiki had a look of half-astonishment at her spectacular performance; half-pleasure at their father's getting what they deserved.  
  
Shampoo was very glad that she and Naru had never fought because she didn't want to have to kill her friend.  
  
Mousse was thinking that if he was that good Shampoo would be his.  
  
Ukyo and Ryoga were just astonished.  
  
She was good. She wasn't as good as Ranma. She wasn't quite as good as Ryoga. But she was damn close. 


	5. Shampoo's Mistake

Chapter 4: Shampoo's Mistake  
  
It was the morning after Naru had arrived. She and Akane got up early for a morning run. When she got back, Ranma and his, or should I say her, father where well into their morning sparing session. Naru stopped to watch.  
  
"He.no, she? What do you call him when he's a girl?" She asked.  
  
"She, I suppose." Akane shrugged. "It never seemed to be an issue before."  
  
"Well, your life is weird enough to make you forget about such trivial things." Her eyes were still on Ranma, and the look in her eyes was thoughtful.  
  
"What were you going to say about him, no her?"  
  
"I was going to say that she's pretty good."  
  
"Yeah. Ranma's the strongest around. Never loses a fight. She's the best." Only Naru could hear the note of pride and admiration in her voice.  
  
"Never loses a fight, hmm." Naru smiled. "That can be changed."  
  
"She doesn't fight girls." Akane's voice held a rueful note.  
  
"Then how did she fight, and beat, Shampoo?"  
  
"That was a different circumstance." Akane sighed. "You heard what happened."  
  
"Yeah. Well, maybe if I threatened to do to him what I did to his father if he didn't agree to fight." Naru trailed off, a wicked gleam in her eyes.  
  
Akane laughed. Ranma and Genma had finished their fight by now, so the two of them went inside to get ready for school.  
  
For once Ranma and Akane were not late for school. There was some confusion over who was going to walk on the fence as they began, but it ended with Ranma being the gentleman and conceding to Naru while he walked beside Akane on the ground. Nobody noticed the satisfied smile that Naru wore.  
  
At school, the boys stared at Naru. They asked Ranma if he had managed to find a way to split his girl side off. This, of course, did not make Ranma or Naru happy at all. By the time school was out for the day, Naru had managed to become the most sought after girl in school, apart from Akane. Also, Kunou had issued his, "if you wish to date her, you must defeat her" challenge, and Ranma and Akane were laughing their heads off at her predicament.  
  
"It's pretty annoying, but you should be able to handle it." Akane smiled. "After what you did to our fathers, I have complete faith in you."  
  
"Hey, thanks for giving him what he deserved, finally." Ranma grinned. "I've wanted to do that for so long."  
  
"Why don't you?" Naru asked.  
  
"I can't do that."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Well, because, he's my old man. I can't do that." He sounded unsure.  
  
"What do you think I'm going to do to my old man when I catch up with him." Naru smiled evilly.  
  
Ranma shuddered. "I get the point. Where did you learn martial arts? Your pretty good."  
  
"It runs in the family apparently." She shrugged. "Mom taught me the basics, but mostly I taught myself."  
  
"Same here." Akane and Ranma said at the same time. "Except it was my dad instead of mom." They glared at each other as they finished speaking.  
  
Naru nodded. "That's usually what happens with the best martial artists. Hey Ranma, would you ever consider a fight with me?" She grinned.  
  
"I don't." He stopped. *If I say I don't fight girls, she would pound me for thinking girls were weaker than boys. If I say I will fight her, I would have to fight for real or else she would beat me up for letting her win. If I fought for real, I might hurt her.*  
  
"You don't what?" Naru asked sweetly, perfectly aware of what he was thinking.  
  
"I don't know. I kind of get tired of fighting all the time. I don't really want another challenger." He hoped that would work as an excuse.  
  
"I suppose you're right. That would get annoying." Naru gave the appearance of understanding.  
  
Ranma laughed inwardly in triumph. He had won.  
  
Little did he know that no matter how long it took, Naru always had the last laugh.  
  
Shampoo was in the Cat Café when Naru stopped by to say hello. Shampoo greeted her friend enthusiastically.  
  
%Hi Naru. Did you have a good day at school?%  
  
%Yes and no. You know Kunou?%  
  
%The idiot. Yes. Why?%  
  
%I am now on his 'girls to date' list.% She rolled her eyes. %And I have to fight the entire male population of Furinkan High before school every morning. Did you ever hear about how it was for Akane before Ranma came?%  
  
%Poor you.% Shampoo suddenly got serious. %Speaking of Ranma.%  
  
%Oh no. I have absolutely no desire to chase after him. He's not my type.% She said, correctly guessing what Shampoo was going to say. %Maybe one of the other boys. Ryoga perhaps, or maybe Mousse. He's pretty cute without his glasses.%  
  
%You can't have Mousse either.% Naru was taken aback by the anger in her voice.  
  
%Calm down. It was just a thought. Besides.% And here she shot Shampoo a sideways glance. %I thought you didn't like Mousse.%  
  
Shampoo didn't say anything. Naru smiled, and changed the subject.  
  
It was after Naru had left that Shampoo began to wonder what Mousse was doing. She hadn't seen him almost all day. Frowning, she went in search of him.  
  
She found him in his room, packing.  
  
%What are you doing?% She asked.  
  
%Packing.%  
  
%I can see that, but why?%  
  
%You can rejoice. I'm leaving. I've given up.% Mousse looked at her sadly. %That's what you want, isn't it.% I wasn't a question.  
  
%No.% The force of that word surprised them both.  
  
%Why not? You don't care about me. All you care about is Ranma. I'm just a tool you can use in your scemes to trap him into marrying you.% He stood up, anger in his eyes. %Well I won't bother you or him ever again now. Goodbye.% He strode out the door.  
  
%Mousse, come back here.% She ordered him. He kept walking. %Mousse, please come back.% She whined. He did not even hesitate. %Mousse, don't go because you love me.% She pleaded softly.  
  
He stopped, but he did not turn. %Yes, I love you. But you don't love me. That's the problem. Go chase after Ranma. I wish you luck with him.% He finally turned to look at her briefly. %As long as he makes you happy, I am happy. I will not ever stand in your way again.% He turned and left.  
  
Long after he was gone, Shampoo stood in his room, tears running down her face, though she could not even understand why she was crying.  
  
Naru saw Mousse leaving, and knew there was going to be trouble. She ran into the café and found Shampoo still crying.  
  
%Come with me Xian Pu. I know a place where we can talk.% She led Shampoo to the top of Furinkan High School and sat her down.  
  
%Now tell me exactly what happened.% 


	6. Shampoo's Love

Chapter 5: Shampoo's Love  
  
Shampoo told Naru everything through her sobs. How Mousse had walked out, how she had pleaded for him to stay, and even how she didn't understand why she was crying over it. Naru sat thoughtfully for a moment.  
  
%Xian Pu, I think I might be able to help you, but you have to do exactly what I say.% Naru put her arm on Shampoo's shoulder. %Now, tell me the truth. How exactly do you feel about Ranma?% She shushed Shampoo before she could say anything. %Don't answer right away. Think about it for a few minutes.%  
  
Shampoo sat there and thought it through. Did she really love Ranma?  
  
*Yes,* she decided.  
  
Why?  
  
*Because I'm going to marry him. He defeated me.*  
  
Did she have to marry him?  
  
*Yes.*  
  
Why?  
  
*Because it's tribal law.*  
  
But did that mean she loved him?  
  
*No.*  
  
So did she really love him? She was confused.  
  
Naru saw all this in her eyes. She said nothing though. It was up to Shampoo to come to her own decisions.  
  
Shampoo's mind whirled with through all her confusion. She loved Ranma. She was almost certain of it.  
  
*So why am I crying over Mousse?*  
  
*If Ranma left, would I cry?*  
  
She didn't know. She wasn't sure of anything anymore except for one thing. She didn't want Mousse to go.  
  
Why?  
  
*Because I love him.*  
  
A new light came into Shampoo's eyes as she reached her decision. She turned to Naru.  
  
%I don't love Ranma. I thought I did because I knew it would be easier to marry him if I believed I loved him. But I don't. I never have.%  
  
%Who do you love?%  
  
%Mousse. I love Mousse. I could never tell myself that. I didn't think we could ever marry because I knew he would never defeat me. So I made myself believe I didn't love him. But I always have.% She smiled. %I always will.%  
  
Naru smiled back at her. %When are you going to tell him?%  
  
%As soon as I can find him.%  
  
%And what are you going to do about your great grandmother?%  
  
%I'll deal with that when it comes.% Shampoo was determined.  
  
%Now all we have to do is find Mousse. What is he most likely to do when he gives up on you?%  
  
%Oh, most likely go commit suicide.% Shampoo smiled humorously. %Or do something similar.% She trailed off in horror as she realized what she was saying. %Oh no.%  
  
%We have to find him.% Naru's voice was grim.  
  
Dusk was falling and Ranma and Akane were in the middle of an argument with Ryoga watching (He hadn't fought with Ranma ever since the day Naru had arrived) when Naru burst in. All activity stopped when they saw the look on her face.  
  
"We have to find Mousse!" She said urgently.  
  
"Why?" Ranma asked.  
  
"He's given up on Shampoo and we have to find him before he does something drastic."  
  
"Something drastic?" Akane frowned.  
  
Naru sliced her hand across her throat. Ranma, Akane, and Ryoga's faces turned ashen.  
  
"He.he's going to." Ryoga stuttered.  
  
"We think so. And Shampoo's just realized that she loves him and if he." She trailed off.  
  
"What are we waiting for?" Akane yelled. "Ranma, you and Ryoga go together. Naru and I will."  
  
"No. Akane, go with Ranma. Ryoga will come with me. We need a strong guy in every party to restrain him until Shampoo gets there." Naru interrupted.  
  
"Who's searching with Shampoo?"  
  
"Shampoo doesn't need anybody to help her. Come on. We're wasting time."  
  
Just after Shampoo and Naru had left, Mousse had decided on the top of Funikan High as "as good a place to die as any". He was there now, looking at the sword he had brought with him, preparing himself to do it.  
  
Luckily, at that moment, Naru and Ryoga were running by yelling for him. Ryoga happened to look up and see him.  
  
"Up there." He yelled to his companion.  
  
"Thank god he's still in one piece." She said as she saw him.  
  
"Not for long." Ryoga's voice was grim. Naru nodded and grabbed Ryoga so he wouldn't get lost. Then they both began to run towards the high school shouting Mousse's name.  
  
Mousse heard them. He paused in puzzlement as he saw the two of them running towards him. What did they want? Couldn't they see he was about to die?  
  
By this time, they had reached the top of the building. Naru nodded to Ryoga. "Stop him from doing anything drastic. Use force if you have to. I'll call for Shampoo."  
  
"Right." Ryoga ran up to Mousse. "Mousse, don't do anything stupid. Shampoo's coming and she needs to talk to you."  
  
"She has nothing to say that would interest me." Mousse growled.  
  
"Oh yes she does." Naru walked up to them. "Ryoga, call for Shampoo. I'll handle him."  
  
"What could she have to say?" Mouse asked. "She hates me. She only thinks of Ranma."  
  
"Didn't you guys have an incident with a contrary jewel or something? Wasn't there something odd about that situation?" Naru asked.  
  
"Well, yes, but that isn't anything." Mousse said uncertainly.  
  
"She's coming." Ryoga yelled. "Ranma and Akane are with her. They must have all heard us."  
  
"Good." Naru said, then turned back to Mousse. "If she doesn't care, then why is she coming for you?"  
  
"She just wants to have me around so she can exploit me." Mousse was beginning to move the sword. If Shampoo was around when he did this, he didn't know if he would be able to. He needed to act now.  
  
Naru saw his movement. She grabbed his arm, but he was stronger that her. She yelled. "Ryoga, help me."  
  
Ryoga ran and grabbed the arm with one hand. With the other, he grabbed Mousse's shoulder. Ryoga was not the best martial artist around, but he was the strongest. Mousse couldn't move. Naru took his hand and pried the fingers away from the sword. Once it was in her hand, she backed up.  
  
Shampoo scrambled to the top of the building at that moment. Ryoga moved aside and she threw her arms around Mousse and kissed him.  
  
Mousse couldn't think straight. *Shampoo is hugging me. She kissed me. She's crying into me shoulder. She's turning her face up. She kissed me again.*  
  
"Umm, Shampoo, maybe you need glasses. Ranma's over there." He tried to point, but she was hugging him to tightly.  
  
"Shampoo no needs glasses." She was smiling at him through her tears. "Shampoo knows who she kiss." She kissed him once again.  
  
Mousse couldn't understand.  
  
"Wo ie ni, Mousse." She whispered.  
  
"What did you say?" He had to make sure he had heard right. "It's too good to be true."  
  
%I love you, Mousse.% She whispered again.  
  
%What about Ranma?% He asked.  
  
%What about him?%  
  
%You have to marry him.%  
  
%If I don't want to, I'd like to see anyone make me.% She smiled at him. %I don't love him. I never have.%  
  
Naru gave a very pointed look to everyone around there. They went home to the Tendo Dojo, where Ryoga had taken up semi-permanent residence, leaving Shampoo and Mousse alone.  
  
%And who do you love.%  
  
%I already told you.%  
  
%I want to hear you say it again.%  
  
%I love you, Mousse.% She kissed him passionately. 


	7. The Challenger

Chapter 6: The Challenger  
  
Ranma was very happy. Naru had made life much easier for him. Now that Shampoo and Mousse were together there was one less fiancée and one less guy with a grudge against Ranma. The fact that Ryoga had stopped attacking him was also a plus. If she could just get rid of the Kunous and get Ukyo a boyfriend things would be practically perfect.  
  
He and Naru had made an agreement. In return for teaching both her and Akane some techniques, she would teach him those pressure points she had used against Happosia and his father. In fact, they were going to teach each other everything they knew. Even Akane was putting in her two cents. She was teaching them how to pull a mallet out of thin air. Ryoga was also joining and showing them what he knew. Sometimes Ukyo, Shampoo and Mousse would also stop by to work with them. Everyone was improving. Ranma was still the best, and his quickness, his ability to heal fast, and his way of adapting techniques would most likely keep him there, but he was pretty hard pressed, especially by Ryoga, Naru and (though he hated to admit it) Akane.  
  
In fact, Akane had really improved. She and Naru were about equal now. Their fights would usually end in a tie, and when one of them did win, it was not by much.  
  
Akane and Naru knew this. At night, they would discuss what they had learned during the day. "Now," said Akane. "If we can just trick him into fighting one of us, we'll know how we both stand against him."  
  
"Shampoo and Ukyo too." None of the boys knew it, but all the girls (minus Kodachi) were studying together (Naru had worked some of her special magic and now all of them were getting along.).  
  
"Yeah. The problem is, the jerk won't fight a girl. If we could even get to fight Ryoga we would have some idea, but he doesn't fight us either. It's like some kind of conspiracy."  
  
"You know English right?" Naru asked.  
  
"Yeah. Why?"  
  
"Want to hear something clever?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Translate 'Reckless Annoying Neriman Martial Artist' to English and take the first letter of each word."  
  
"So."  
  
"What does it spell?"  
  
"Umm." Akane's eyes brightened in realization and delight. "It spells Ranma. That is clever."  
  
"That's just proof that it is a conspiracy." Naru said jokingly.  
  
"Can you do any of the others?" Akane asked.  
  
"I'm working on it. Actually right now I'm working on his last name. Stubborn, oblivious, annoying. no already did that..." She trailed off, lost in thought.  
  
Akane went back to the original problem. "How do we trick him into fighting one of us?" She mused to herself.  
  
"Antagonistic. That's it." Naru smiled. "Oh, pardon Akane. What did you say?"  
  
Akane repeated the question.  
  
"Oh, I've already dealt with that." Naru smiled at Akane's shocked expression. "Now, what good word begins with 't'?"  
  
Ranma and Ryoga were walking home together, talking companionably about martial arts (what else). They had become pretty good friends now that Ryoga understood that it was not Ranma's fault that he turned into a pig. They still fought occasionally, but it was more a show of skill than a match.  
  
The two of them were so caught up in their discussion of how to adapt Akane's cosmo-mallet technique that they didn't notice the stranger that was walking beside them until he spoke.  
  
"But if you could pull the mallet out without grabbing it, and just position it above the guys head." Ranma was saying.  
  
"How would you do that?" The stranger asked.  
  
"I haven't quite figured that part out yet, but if you could." Ranma did a double take. "Wait a sec, who're you?"  
  
The stranger smiled. Ryoga was looking between him and Ranma in amazement. He looked almost exactly like Ranma. The only differences were the color of his eyes, the length of his hair, the style of his clothing, and a slightly different build of his body. But other than that, they could be mistaken for one another.  
  
"I'm a martial artist."  
  
"So what else is new?" Ranma shrugged. "You snuck up on me like that. Of course you're a martial artist. You new to the area?"  
  
"Yeah. I'm a pretty good one too."  
  
"Obviously."  
  
"I hear you're the best martial artist in these parts. I wanted to know if I could, perhaps, challenge you to a match?" The stranger looked hopeful. "I don't expect to win, but I want to know how well I measure up to you."  
  
Ranma thought about it. Ryoga added his opinion.  
  
"If you won't I will. This guy looks like a challenge." Ryoga grinned.  
  
"You must be Ryoga Hibiki, second only to Ranma in martial arts. I was going to challenge you to a match as well, sometime after the one with Ranma (provided he accepts). Would you?"  
  
"That sounds fine to me."  
  
"Yeah, I accept your challenge as well. How about tomorrow?" Ranma said. "I'm getting tired of the same old people."  
  
"But I thought you said you were getting tired of fighting." Naru said to Ranma.  
  
"I.um." Ranma muttered uncomfortably.  
  
"Oh come on Naru. We all know that you know that Ranma doesn't fight girls." Ryoga said.  
  
"Ranma didn't know that." Naru had that sweet, insincere, smile on that she always wore when making anyone, especially Ranma, squirm. "I was having fun with him. Why'd you have to ruin it Ryoga?" Her teasing smile was on Ryoga now.  
  
"Because you were going to make him miserable."  
  
"So?"  
  
"Wait a minute," Ranma frowned. "You mean to say that you knew I didn't fight girls, and you weren't going to kill me because of it."  
  
"Genma is your father. Of course you don't fight girls."  
  
"Hey, I'm."  
  
"I know you're nothing like him. But he did train you, and some things are hard to shake." She smiled. "I mean to break you of that."  
  
"Ok. Great." Ranma sounded a bit unsure.  
  
"First lesson, if I'm the one who asks for the fight, it's my fault if I get hurt because I challenged you."  
  
Ranma, who was so used to everything being his fault, seemed shocked by this thought.  
  
"Second lesson, which has nothing to with fighting girls, but you should learn just the same, not everything is your fault. And some other people in the room would do well to learn that to." She didn't mention any names, but her gaze seemed to linger on Soun, Genma (in panda form and glaring and Naru), and Akane. "And you should always get a chance to explain yourself." This was definitely directed at Akane.  
  
Ranma was very shocked by this. Everyone was always taking Akane's side in almost everything, but here she was, subtly taking his side. He really liked this girl.  
  
"Hey, Nabiki." Naru had come back after showing Ryoga where his room was. "You going to take any bets on tomorrow's fight?"  
  
"No. Everyone will be betting on Ranma, and Ranma will most likely win." Nabiki sighed. "If only."  
  
"He won't win." Naru said. "I know him. However." She smiled. "I wanted to make a bet with you on something else."  
  
"What?" Nabiki was intrigued.  
  
Naru told her. Nabiki clapped her hands with glee. This was going to be an easy win. Even Ranma wasn't that stupid.  
  
Akane lay on her bed, studying. Naru walked in. Akane looked up.  
  
"That was pretty clever, what you did to Ranma. Tell me, was that challenge staged?"  
  
"Huh, the challenge? Oh no. That was real. I just took advantage of it." Naru seemed distracted.  
  
"Well, I hope the other guy wins. It will serve Ranma right." Naru saw that there was no conviction behind those words.  
  
"He most likely won't, unless Ranma gets careless."  
  
"You know him." Akane asked excitedly.  
  
"Hmm, you could say that." Naru grinned. "I'm going to tell you a secret Akane, but don't you dare tell anyone else. At least, not yet." 


	8. Ranma Vs Ranma?

Chapter 7: Ranma Vs. Ranma?  
  
Ranma faced the mystery guy on the field of Furinkan High. It seemed like the entire population of Nerima had come to watch, like they always did when Ranma got into a fight. He could see Akane, Ryoga, Ukyo, Cologne, Shampoo, Mousse, and all his other friends and enemies. Except for one. Try as he might, he couldn't find Naru in the crowd. He shrugged, and turned to his opponent.  
  
"You know, I'd kinda like to know your name before I fight you." He yelled.  
  
The guy shrugged. "It's only going to make things confusing, but it you insist." Ranma nodded. "My real name is Ranma as well." At this, everyone drew a collective gasp. "But you can just call me Ran."  
  
"Ok Ran. Any rules."  
  
"This is Anything-goes style. You make the rules." Ran grinned. "Sound fair."  
  
"Fair enough. Begin." And he hurled himself at Ran. Ran grinned, and grabbed Ranma's fist right before it connected with his stomach. Using it as leverage, he flipped over Ranma, turning in midair and kicking at him while Ranma was off balanced. It would have worked, except for the fact that Ranma had incredible speed, and dodged. Around and around the fight went. Everything was a weapon.  
  
An hour later, they were facing each other, both of them bruised, and panting slightly, but still fighting. Ranma had found out almost too late that this boy had the same incredible healing powers that he had. He had scored a good hit on Ran's eye. It should have blinded him for at least five minutes, however, when he had gone to attack the blind side, he had found that Ran was able to see him perfectly and had nearly landed a solid punch on Ranma's temple.  
  
Ranma grinned. Regular fighting wasn't working, now it was time for special techniques.  
  
Suddenly he sprang forward. Grabbing Ran so he couldn't dodge, he did his lightning punch technique. When they disengaged, it was obvious who was the worse off. A hundred punches in a second to the stomach is not a comfortable thing to take. Ran shrugged. Special techniques it was.  
  
Now. By some special unspoken rule, it was Ran's turn to show the world what he had. As Ranma rushed at him again, he calmly stood his ground until Ranma was almost on top of him. Then he suddenly pulled a mallet out of thin air and, just as Ranma was about to punch him again, hit him on the head, hard.  
  
Ranma was dazed, but still able to function. *So he knows the cosmo-mallet technique. The problem is, I've never been able to find a way to block that one.* Ranma grinned. *Well I just won't get close enough for him to use it.* His confidence returning, Ranma did one of his favorite techniques.  
  
"Shi-Shi Hokodan." He cried.  
  
Ran was knocked off his feet by the ball of energy. Getting up again, and definitely looking the worse for wear, he stared at Ranma. "Hey, I've seen that somewhere before. Except it was a different color, and different words. It was powered by."  
  
"Despair." Ryoga said with him from the crowds, knowing that technique well.  
  
Ranma nodded.  
  
"Did you create that variation?" Ran asked.  
  
"Yeah. I needed it to combat Ryoga when he used the original, but despair wasn't the right kind of emotion for me."  
  
Ran whistled, impressed. "Wow. I'd like to learn that." He walked up to Ranma. "I concede. I can't beat that, and I have a feeling that's not all you have up your sleeve. What emotion did you use, no wait, let me guess." Ran though about it for a minute. "Confidence?"  
  
"Yeah. How'd you guess?"  
  
"It was the only emotion you were showing at the time. Confidence is a good block against despair."  
  
Ryoga came out to the field. "Good match. You may not have won, but you did give Ranma a run for his money. So far, I'm the only one who can really do that." Ranma nodded in agreement.  
  
"I'm going to need a little time to recover. How bout having our match a week from today Ryoga." Ran's hand was on his stomach.  
  
"Sounds fine to me." Ryoga grinned.  
  
Naru was at the Tendo Dojo when Ranma, Akane, and Ryoga got there. "Where were you?" Ranma asked. "You missed a good fight."  
  
"I was there." Naru said. "I was just in my curse form." She was clutching her stomach as if in pain. When asked, she told them she was feeling a bit queasy.  
  
"Your. Oh right. I forgot that you're cursed too." Ryoga said. "Why were you in curse form?"  
  
"I didn't want all the guy chasing after me. I wanted to see the fight." Naru rolled her eyes, and crossed her fingers at the half-truth. "It was a good fight. What happened to Ran? I left before then. My stomach, you know."  
  
"He kinda disappeared." Ranma said. "He needed to recover. He has a match with Ryoga in a week."  
  
"About that match." Ryoga turned to Akane and Naru. "It's not going to have as big a turnout as this one because, well, I'm not Ranma."  
  
"You'd be surprised." Ranma said.  
  
"Anyway, I was wondering." Ryoga blushed, then said the next part very fast. "Ifyoutwocouldbetheretocheermeon."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Umm. if you two could be there to cheer me on." Ryoga said more slowly, but no less nervously.  
  
"Ok." Said Akane smiling. Ryoga smiled back at her.  
  
"Sure, but I'll be in curse form like today." Naru also smiled.  
  
Ranma was surprised. When Akane had accepted. Ryoga had just smiled back at her, but when Naru smiled at Ryoga, his blush got deeper. He looked closely at Naru.  
  
Yes, there was definitely a blush there. So faint, that if he hadn't been looking for it, he wouldn't have seen it, but it was there. Ranma leaned back, smiling knowingly.  
  
Naru and Akane left, discussing the match. Ranma turned to Ryoga, the knowing smile still hovering on his lips.  
  
"So." He said.  
  
"So what?" Ryoga asked, knowing what he was going to say.  
  
"You don't like Akane anymore do you?"  
  
Silence.  
  
"No, I didn't think so. I approve. I definitely approve. Naru's a nice girl. She'll be good for you."  
  
"She's not mine yet, and she'll probably never be mine." Ryoga sighed. "I think she likes you. She's always teasing you."  
  
Ranma thought quietly about this. It was true, Naru was always teasing him, but not in a flirty way.  
  
"She is always teasing me, but I don't think that she likes me in that particular way. I don't know why, but she seems to see me like a sister sees her brother, not a girl sees a boy." Ranma patted Ryoga on the back. "I think you have a chance." He said, softly to his friend.  
  
For once, Ryoga's face shone with hope. "I want to impress her in the fight next week. Can you." He hesitated. "Could you help me make a new variation of.?"  
  
"Ryoga, I'll help you make a new variation of anything." Ranma grinned. "Come on. Let's go train." 


	9. Ryoga and Naru

Chapter 8: Naru and Ryoga  
  
Akane and Naru watched amusedly as Ranma and Ryoga worked on variations of the breaking point technique. "What variation can you make of a technique for breaking rocks?" Naru asked.  
  
"Well, if you adapt it to humans." Ranma mused. Naru and Akane looked scared. "Just kidding. Were adapting it to break trees."  
  
"Oh, the poor trees." Akane said in a sarcastically sympathetic voice. "Ranma, how could you?"  
  
"Why trees?" Naru asked.  
  
"Think what happens when a guy is under a tree and it shatters." Ryoga offered.  
  
"Lots of splinters?" Naru asked.  
  
Ranma rolled his eyes. "If you're not going to contribute something to this session get out."  
  
"Or what?"  
  
"Or I'll make you." Ranma said threateningly.  
  
"Try it." Naru smiled challengingly.  
  
Ranma and Ryoga were shocked. What were they supposed to do? Akane would have stormed out if she had been alone. But Naru always came up with a snappy remark.  
  
Naru's challenging grin seemed infectious. Akane soon caught it. While Naru's smile was focused mainly on Ryoga, she turned to Ranma.  
  
Ranma went slightly pink, and this wasn't because he was angry.  
  
"Fine. Stay. We don't care, do we Ryoga?" Ranma finally spluttered. He turned to his friend, who was smiling foolishly at Naru. "Ryoga? Hello, is there someone named Ryoga there?"  
  
Ryoga didn't respond. There was a girl smiling at him. A pretty girl. Sure, she was smiling at him because she had just challenged him to throw her out of a room, but she was smiling at him.  
  
Ranma gave up trying to get a response from him. He went back to glaring at the girls, specifically at Naru because he couldn't quite bring himself to look into Akane's eyes. He was afraid that he might get as dazed as his friend.  
  
Naru grinned, and turned her attention to Ranma. "Do you really hate us that much?" She said, her eyes wide, and filling with false tears. If he hadn't known her as well as he did he would have believed the act.  
  
"Naru." He rolled his eyes.  
  
"Fine then, we'll just go." She gave all the appearances of being hurt and insulted by his thoughtless words. "Akane, it's obvious that they don't want us here." They turned to go out. Just before they left, Naru turned and smirked at something behind Ranma.  
  
Ranma soon found out what it was. Ryoga had snapped out of his daze, and he wasn't exactly happy that Ranma had chased the girls out. The act that Naru had pulled hadn't helped.  
  
Ryoga was not really dumb, just stubborn. He would usually have been able to see that it was an act.  
  
However, usually didn't include when he was just coming out of a "pretty girl smiling at me" daze.  
  
"Sounds like Ranma's getting quite a workout in there." Akane smirked as she listened to the cries of "How dare you hurt Naru's feeling like that" (Ryoga) and "Wait, it's not what it seems" (Ranma).  
  
"Yeah. Ryoga is pretty stubborn." Naru smiled almost dreamily. "And nice." As if she suddenly realized what she was saying she looked sharply at Akane. "I mean, it's nice of him to stand up for me.for us like that."  
  
Akane smiled knowingly, but said nothing.  
  
After listening to the shouting for a moment, Akane asked, "Do you think Ryoga is ever going to figure out it was an act?"  
  
"He will when he calms down. Then he'll go to Ranma begging for forgiveness and they'll be friends again." Naru shrugged. "He's not stupid, just stubborn."  
  
"He likes you." Akane said softly.  
  
Naru sighed. "No he doesn't. He likes." She stopped. "He likes someone else. Ranma told me."  
  
"Who?"  
  
"I'm not aloud to tell you. In fact, it was a bit of an accident that I found out." She grinned. "Ranma let it slip when I was in cursed form. Course, he didn't know it was me."  
  
"When are you going to tell them what your cursed form is?" Akane whispered, smiling evilly.  
  
"When the time is right." Naru's grin was pure mischief. "I have to wait for the moment when it was have the best effect."  
  
"Man, you really like her."  
  
"Shut up."  
  
"I mean, you've never been this obsessive over Akane."  
  
"Shut up!!!"  
  
"You were staring at her like you've never seen anything like her. At least when you liked Akane you were aware of the world around you."  
  
"I SAID SHUT UP RANMA!!!"  
  
Ranma was doing one of the things he did best, getting on some one's nerves. In this case, it was Ryoga he was pestering.  
  
"Whoa, Ryoga, I'm not saying that you shouldn't like her. Hell, she'd be really good for you. I'm just saying that I think that this time, you actually like her, instead of just having a crush on her because she hugged you to her bosom when you were a pig."  
  
"I don't like her." Ryoga said softly. "I love her. You understand?"  
  
"Yeah. But this time, you actually love her. You didn't really love Akane."  
  
"RANMA, WILL YOU SHUT UP ABOUT ME AND NARU?"  
  
"What about you and me, Ryoga?"  
  
The girls had returned. As soon as they were sure that the fight was over, they had started to wander back to start pestering them again. Fortunately for Ryoga, they had only heard the last sentence that he had yelled at Ranma, so they had no idea what they were talking about.  
  
That is to say, Naru had no idea what they were talking about. Akane knew, and both Ranma and Ryoga could see it by the look on her face.  
  
Ryoga glared at Ranma, looked pleadingly at Akane, then turned to answer Naru.  
  
"What was that about?" She asked.  
  
"Umm."  
  
"Hey Akane, I need to talk to you outside." Ranma grabbed Akane and steered her to the door. As he passed Ryoga he distinctly heard him mutter, "traitor."  
  
Ranma grinned, and pulled Akane out the door.  
  
"What is it?" Asked him coolly when they had covered sufficient distance from the training hall. She had promised Naru she would try not to get to angry at Ranma, but that didn't mean she was going to be nice to him.  
  
"Listen. I didn't come out here to argue with you. I came out here because I wanted to help Ryoga."  
  
Akane raised an eyebrow. "You wanted to HELP someone?"  
  
"Hey, I said I didn't want to argue." Ranma looked a bit peeved. "Please just work with me."  
  
"Go on. I'm listening."  
  
"Do you think Naru likes Ryoga?" Ranma asked hopefully.  
  
Akane could see where this was going. She was surprised. She had never thought Ranma would ever be nice to Ryoga in anyway, much less become friends with him. But here they were, best friends and Ranma was trying to play matchmaker for his lonely friend.  
  
Akane began to rethink her opinion of Ranma. OK, he could be a jerk, but he was nice sometimes.  
  
"Umm, are you going to answer my question Akane?" Ranma asked.  
  
"Huh. Oh. Sorry. Got sidetracked there."  
  
"Well."  
  
Akane grinned. "She likes him, but she'll never admit it."  
  
"And he won't admit he likes her." Ranma said, sighing. "We need to do something to fix them up together."  
  
Akane's stomach did a flip-flop and the "we". She and Ranma were going to play matchmaker for their best friends. Maybe, just maybe, they would be able to get along.  
  
*Get along with that jerk?* Akane thought. *Never.*  
  
"Umm, Naru doesn't think he likes her because she thinks he likes someone else. Do you know.?"  
  
"Yeah, but how did she find out?" Ranma frowned. "He used to like you."  
  
Akane looked a bit alarmed. "Like me?"  
  
"Calm down. He doesn't anymore. How did she find out?"  
  
"She.er.overheard you while in cursed form." Akane said quickly.  
  
"Oh. OK. Here's the plan."  
  
The boy and the girl in the bushes watched the boy and the girl in front of them talk.  
  
"Do you think it's working?" The boy asked.  
  
"Yes, I think it is." The girl smiled deviously. 


	10. Ryoga's Fight

Chapter 9: Ryoga's Fight  
  
Ryoga faced Ran on the field. Both boys were grinning. This was going to be a good fight.  
  
Ryoga scanned the crowds. They were a lot bigger than he had thought they would be. There was Akane near Ranma, watching them. There was no sign of Naru, but that was no surprise. She had said that she was going to be in curse form.  
  
*Come to think of it, I don't even know what her curse form is.* Ryoga frowned. *Every time I start to actually think about it, I forget, or just think it's not important.*  
  
He looked at Ran. *Is it possible.No, it couldn't be.* His frown got deeper. *Could it?*  
  
"Same rules as with Ranma?" Ryoga yelled.  
  
"Yep. Ready?"  
  
"Are you?"  
  
"As ready as I'll ever be."  
  
"Then begin."  
  
It was obvious from the start that the two of them were evenly matched. *No surprise* thought Ranma. *He gave me as much of a workout as Ryoga ever does. This may take a while.*  
  
It did. Fruitless body sparing turned to secret techniques and neither was really gaining the upper hand.  
  
Suddenly, Ryoga backed up. Ranma leaned forward to watch. This was what he had been waiting for. The techniques that he and Ryoga had modified.  
  
Ryoga put up his hands, grinned, and let loose a ball of energy like the one Ranma had produced when he had fought Ran. However, it was a different color, and Ryoga had not needed to shout anything.  
  
"A silent modified version?" Akane asked in awe. "Ranma, when did you.?"  
  
"When you weren't looking." Ranma grinned. "He wanted to impress Naru, so we practiced in secret where the two of you couldn't find us. Did you really think we were adapting the breaking point technique? You can't adapt that. It already breaks trees."  
  
"But you said."  
  
"I lied."  
  
Ran had picked himself up from the ground. He was looking at Ryoga with the same amount of awe that Akane was.  
  
Suddenly a rock the size of Akane's mallet appeared out of nowhere and hit Ryoga on the head.  
  
"Cosmo ROCK? And he didn't have to touch it." Ranma's eyes widened. "I'm going to have to ask him how he does that."  
  
It was Ryoga's turn to stare in awe at his opponent. Still, he did know that the cosmo object technique would only work so many times a day, so he wasn't worried. But the bump on his head did hurt. And Ran had a few more times he could use the technique.  
  
"That could be useful." Ranma mused aloud. "Cosmo hot water." He trailed off.  
  
"Shh." Akane said. Ran had conjured another rock, but this time, Ryoga had dodged, caught it, and thrown it at his adversary. Ran dodged, but it was obvious that the trick wasn't going to work again.  
  
Ran smiled, and conjured his third and last rock of the day. Ranma didn't get it, why was he wasting it?  
  
While Ryoga was distracted by the rock, Ran rushed forward and nearly hit Ryoga. Ryoga dodged, grinned, and began to back up, dodging Ran's punches as he went.  
  
It was only as he began to lead Ran around that Akane realized what was happening. "Oh Ranma, you didn't." She whispered.  
  
"Yes." He muttered, intent on the battle. "I did."  
  
Ryoga led Ran in a spiral, and when they got to the center.  
  
Nothing happened.  
  
"WHAT?" Akane and Ranma yelled together. "NOTHING HAPPENED."  
  
Even Ryoga looked confused. He had executed the technique properly. What had happened?  
  
One look at Ran's smug face told them everything. He knew the technique, and he had not given off any battle aura when he was trying to punch Ryoga.  
  
Ranma whistled. "This guy's really good. But Ryoga's gonna win still."  
  
Ranma was right. When his opponent was still smiling, he scowled and whispered, "For Naru" and let loose another blast of Ki.  
  
Ran should have dodged it. Everyone was expecting him to dodge it. But he didn't. He hesitated just a fraction of a second at Ryoga's words.  
  
And the battled ended as he was slammed into a tree and knocked out.  
  
"Oh no. Is he hurt?" Akane ran to Ran's side.  
  
"Akane, he just got slammed into a tree. Of course he's hurt. But he'll be fine." Ranma had followed her. "What I don't get was, why did he hesitate?" Ryoga shrugged, but looked thoughtful.  
  
"Oh, poor guy." Akane began to check Ran.  
  
"Akane, get away from him." Ranma growled.  
  
Before Naru had come, Akane would have turned this into an argument. Now that Naru was here though.  
  
"Why Ranma, if I didn't know better, I'd say you were jealous."  
  
"J-j-jealous! Of you!" Ranma yelled. "I just." He didn't finish.  
  
He was jealous, but he would never admit it. Not to anyone. Not even to Ryoga. Not even, well, maybe to Ukyo. And maybe to Naru. For some reason he trusted Naru like a sister. But he wouldn't admit it to anyone else.  
  
Ran stirred. He sat up, rubbing his head where it had hit the tree.  
  
"Ouch. I guess I lost."  
  
"Yeah, you lost, but it was a good fight." Akane said smiling at him. Ranma got even more jealous.  
  
Ryoga stepped up to him. "Ran, can I speak to you for a moment."  
  
"Sure." Ran grinned, still rubbing his head. "But I need to get something for this. How bout you talk to me on the way to Doctor Tofu's."  
  
"You know Doctor Tofu?" Ranma asked.  
  
"Where do you think I went to get patched up after my battle with you?"  
  
"Oh."  
  
"I'll come with you." Akane volunteered.  
  
"Umm, no. I need to talk to Ran alone, if it's alright." Ryoga said.  
  
"Oh, ok." Akane muttered, crestfallen.  
  
"Common Akane. Lets get back to the Dojo." Ranma said. "I have something to discuss with you. About operation RAN."  
  
Both Ryoga and Ran grinned as Akane and Ranma walked off.  
  
"You want to know something interesting?" Ryoga asked Ran as they walked down the street.  
  
"Hmm?"  
  
"If you spell Naru backwards and take away the 'U' you get Ran."  
  
Ran froze.  
  
Ryoga was amused. "You realize that you just gave yourself totally away don't you?"  
  
"Well, you caught me off guard." Ran/Naru said. "You guessed when I hesitated?"  
  
"I suspected then, but I wasn't sure until you started smiling knowingly as Ranma and Akane left. If you had just come to the area, you couldn't already know about the love/hate relationship."  
  
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Naru said musingly.  
  
"May I ask how you managed to cheer for me when we were fighting?" He grinned. "You promised you would."  
  
"Just because I was your opponent, doesn't mean I can't cheer you on."  
  
Ryoga brought Naru, still in boy form, home to Tendo's. Yes, Ryoga actually brought Naru there, and didn't get lost. He had been getting where he wanted to go a lot lately, thanks to Naru.  
  
She had watched Ryoga and done some research on the subject of his directional disability. It turned out that he actually didn't have one. It was all mental. His parents were directionally challenged, and because of this, they were sure that he was as well, so he was raised under that assumption. No wonder he got lost.  
  
Now, usually a psychological block as deeply rooted as this one would be hard to remove. But Naru was as stubborn as any Neriman, and she felt that she owed Ryoga one, so she set out to cure it.  
  
It had started with little things, like getting from his room to the front door on his own. Gradually it progressed to getting to school. Finally, he could get just about anywhere he wanted to go if he knew where it was, or what general direction it was in.  
  
Naru was very proud of herself and him.  
  
Now the two of them walked in together. Ranma and Akane were seated just inside. "Umm, hope you don't mind if Ran stays with us for a while."  
  
"Sure." Said Akane. "I'd like that."  
  
Ranma didn't, but this wasn't really his house, so he didn't say anything.  
  
"Mind if I take a bath?" Ran/Naru asked.  
  
"Sure. Hey, why don't I join you?" Ranma said looking up. He was hoping to set some things strait with Ran alone.  
  
"Umm." Ran/Naru sweatdropped. "That wouldn't be a good idea."  
  
"What's wrong? We're both men." Ranma said confused.  
  
"That's just it, we aren't."  
  
"Wha. Look, just because I turn into a girl sometimes doesn't mean." Ranma began heatedly.  
  
"I wasn't talking about you." Ran/Naru interrupted him.  
  
Akane pored the kettle of hot water she had set on the stove as she got home on Ran/Naru.  
  
Ranma fainted in shock. 


End file.
